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California Wine Tasting Notes
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2007 Dancing Bull California, Sauvignon Blanc, $12 Score: 87.0 Gooseberry nose with a dusting of fresh mown grass; light body and firm acidity on the palate, with delicate lime, honeydew melon and mineral flavors, followed by a clean finish. After the tasting we paired it with crab cakes and it was just the ticket. Good value. |
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2007 Round Hill California, Pinot Grigio $10 Score: 90.0 This Pinot Grigio includes 5% Chenin Blanc and 5% Muscat Canelli in the blend, and yet it reminds me more of Chenin with its ripe melon and lime flavors. On the palate it's seductively silky, and shows just a touch of residual sugar balanced nicely by crisp acidity. Bright, fresh, quaffable and inexpensive. |
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2007 Mirassou California, Riesling $12 Score: 89.0 To give credit where credit is due, Mirassou has been keeping Riesling alive in California for (at least) the past 30 years. The 2007 version delivers gala apples and white peach flavors. The off-dry palate gives soft mouthfeel, balanced by crisp acidity and low pH, as well as a hint of spritz. |
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2007 Round Hill California, Chardonnay $8.00 Score: 84.0 This is a simple Chardonnay with good varietal definition in its lemon chiffon/under-ripe pear flavors. It's medium-full bodied and could use a bit more acid, so it shows best when chilled. At $8 it's a rare bargain. |
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205 Mosby Winery & Vineyards California, Primativo $26 Score: 88.0 Of the nose the winemaker says "red berry and wintergreen" and I have nothing to add. On the palate it's rich, silky, jammy blackberry and plum, overly ripe, but opulent in a way that will remind you of Australian wines. 588 cases produced. |
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2006 Redwood Creek, California, Cabernet Sauvignon: $8 Score: 83.0 At this price point it's an accomplishment if you can show some varietal character. The varietal character here is expressed as black fruits with an herbal layer that carries through the finish. The fruit and spice flavors are a bit muddled, but it's decent for the price. |
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2007 Folie a Deux, California, Menage a Trois Rosé $9 Score: 87.0 By blending Merlot, Syrah and Gewurztraminer, Folie a Deux winery has created a bright rose-colored wine with floral notes in the nose, an off-dry palate with flavors reminiscent of watermelon, light body and good acid. It makes a good aperitif and a great match for sushi. |
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2007 Folie a Deux, California, Menage a Trois White $9 Score: 88.0 This off-dry white blend of Moscato, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc offers fresh melon and honeysuckle aromas and flavors with enough acid to keep it vibrant. A super value. |
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Folie a Deux, California, Menage a Trois Red $9 Score: 90.0 This full-bodied red blend of Zinfandel, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon serves up rich blueberry jam fruit with allspice overtones and soft tannins. A fruit bomb, but a well balanced fruit bomb. |
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2006 Round Hill California, Merlot $8 Score: 86.0 Lighter in color and body than the usual Merlot, the 2006 Round Hill has dry cherry and mineral flavors, soft tannin and a crisp edge through the cherry-berry-earth finish. Better structured than a "fruit bomb" and it's a bargain at $8. |
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2006 Redwood Creek California Merlot $8 Score: 84.0 This is a simple wine with a subdued nose, yet concentrated black cherry and plum fruit on the palate. It shows supple tannins on the mid-palate, decent balance and a chalky finish. It's better balanced than you would expect from this price point. It's a good quaff for casual dining -- the perfect pizza wine. |
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2006 Redwood Creek California Chardonnay $8 Score: 90.0 Don't let the price fool you; Redwood Creek's 2006 Chardonnay is worth twice the price. At this price point you can't expect much varietal character or complexity, yet this is a superbly made wine that reminds me in some ways of a Spanish Albariño with more body. It's a blend of Chardonnay (87%) with lesser amounts of Chenin Blanc, Viognier and various other white varieties, but the Chardonnay shows through with a hint of lemon-chiffon wrapped around a citrus peel core and fine minerality through the finish. There's no oak here, so the fruit stands on its own. It's a beautiful food wine, particularly with spicy Asian or cajun fare, and it's a bargain to boot. |
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2006 Red Rock California Merlot Reserve $12 Score: 83.0 This E&J Gallo brand was only available in restaurants until the '06 vintage. It's a light bodied red with raspberry overtones and modest tannin. You won't find complexity (or any oak character, for that matter), but there is elegance in its simplicity, balance and structure, making it any easy match at the table, and a bargain at $12. |
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2007 Round Hill Oak Free California Chardonnay $9 Score: 87.0 With no oak ageing this Chardonnay is crisp and vibrant, medium bodied, and full of green apples and tart lemon flavors with a hint of apricot. A fine aperitif and food wine, it will pair with a wide variety of seafood, poultry, pork or pasta. The alcohol is a reasonable 13.2%. A bargain at $9. |
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2006 Round Hill California Cabernet Sauvignon: $9 Score: 84.0 A medium-light bodied wine with aromas and flavors of cherry and raspberry with a hint of black currant. It's all about the fruit, pure and simple. Showing velvety tannins and elegant structure, this is an easy quaffer you can enjoy without much thought to your wallet. P.S. -- only 13% alcohol |
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